From the Desk of the GM - August 31, 2009

"Playoff Edition"

Regardless of the outcome of tonight's fan appreciation game (7 pm at Canwest), the Goldeyes will finish the 2009 regular season in second place. With Fargo finishing third, the Goldeyes will face their arch rivals from North Dakota in the first round which is a best of five series.



Here are some historical facts and stats about the Goldeyes and RedHawks:

- The RedHawks and Goldeyes have not faced each other in the playoffs since 2006. In that series, the Goldeyes took the first two games in Fargo before coming home to Winnipeg. The RedHawks took games 3 and 4 in Winnipeg and then won a very exciting game 5 that was played back at Newman Outdoor Field.
- The Fish have not defeated the Hawks in a playoff series since 2001.
- In 2009, the teams each won 9 games. The Goldeyes were 5-4 in Fargo and the RedHawks were 5-4 in Winnipeg.
- Fargo is currently first in team batting average with a .292 mark and is fourth in team ERA at 4.79.
- Winnipeg is third in team batting average, sitting at .276 and is first in team ERA with 4.24.
- Winnipeg has hit a total of 119 homers compared with Fargo's 113.
- This is the 9th playoff meeting with the RedHawks having the lead at 5-3
- All-time playoff record for Winnipeg vs. Fargo is 14-18; at Winnipeg Stadium 2-3, at Canwest Park 4-6 and at Newman Outdoor Field 8-9.

Here is the schedule:

Wednesday, September 2 - at Newman Outdoor Field - 6 pm
Thursday, September 3 - at Newman Outdoor Field - 6 pm
Friday, September 4 - at Canwest Park - 7 pm
Saturday, September 5 - at Canwest Park - 6 pm (if necessary)
Sunday, September 6 - at Canwest Park - - 7 pm(if necessary)

All games can be heard live on 1290 CFRW AM or at www.cfrw.ca with the voice of the Goldeyes Paul Edmonds calling the play by play.

Tickets for all playoff games can be purchased at the Canwest Park box office, by calling 780-3333 or by visiting www.ticketmaster.ca or by clicking the links above for each game.

In the other first round matchup, Kansas City (#4 seed) will be looking to defend their Northern League title when they face Gary (#1 seed). That series will start in KC on Wednesday and Thursday before moving back to the Steel Yard for games 3, 4 and 5 (if necessary).

Playoff baseball is always exciting, but anytime the Goldeyes and RedHawks get together, the excitement and intensity moves to a whole new level. The players would love to see a full house on Friday night when Fargo comes to town. Hope to see everyone there!

For up to the minute information about the Goldeyes, check us out on Twitter.

GoldeyesGM on Twitter
Winnipeg Goldeyes on Twitter

Until next time…